Canterbury and Westland. 213 



enlarging considerably below it, and receiving, four miles lower down, 

 the Crow river on its left bank, having its glacier sources on the 

 southern slopes of Mount Rolleston. A few miles above this junction, 

 the valley already assumes the principal characteristic features of all 

 our large alpine rivers, a wide shingle-bed about a mile broad, in 

 which the river meanders in numerous channels. Six miles below the 

 Crow river, the Bealey, at the head of which Arthur and Groat's Passes 

 are situated, enters the main valley ; and seven miles lower down, the 

 Hawdon joins the Waimakariri on its northern, and the Cass on its 

 southern bank. Eespectively twenty-one and twenty-five miles from 

 the junction of the north branch with the "White river, two of its most 

 important affluents, the Poulter and the Esk join the river, which from 

 that junction had followed a general east-by-south course. It now 

 turns sharply to the south-by-west, or in the direction of the valley of 

 the Esk. After a course of eight miles, and still having a bed of about 

 half a mile wide, with high terraced flats on both sides, the Broken 

 river joins it from the west, bringing the drainage from the Cragieburn 

 range and the western slopes of Mount Torlesse. Before following 

 the rivers through the gorge to the Canterbury plains, I wish to add a 

 few words respecting the small lakes which still exist among the 

 morainic accumulations, and lacustrine and fluviatile deposits in the 

 district under review. In the first part, mention was made of the re- 

 markable glacialized appearance of the country, and that after the 

 retreat of the great glacier during the New Zealand Ice-period, a large 

 lake had been formed, before the gorge which now passes between 

 Mounts Torlesse and Puketeraki had been excavated. This lake 

 became gradually filled by lacustrine and fluviatile deposits; but 

 the glacier advanced again, excavated new channels, and deposited 

 new morainic accumulations upon the older beds of similar origin ; 

 amongst these, several small lakes are still situated. Thus Blackwater, 

 a small tarn, lies between the older morainic accumulations, protected 

 by roches moutonnees, whilst Grrassmere and Lake Sarah are the last 

 remnants of a lake of considerable extent, where now the Cass plains 

 are situated ; the moraines east of Lake Grrassmere, crossing the 

 valley, being, however, still well visible. Lake Pearson, on the other 

 hand, owes its preservation to two large shingle-fans on the eastern 

 and western ends, by which its bed has been protected. Lake Letitia 

 on the northern, and Blackwater, and other smaller tarns on the 

 southern side of the eastern portion of the terraced plateau, are small 

 remnants of the old lake once existing here. Bodies moutonnees and 

 morainic accumulations are visible everywhere, rising above the general 



